Abstract

Implant therapy for elderly patients

Georg-Hubertus Nentwig, Christoph Klaus Müller
Due to the increasing aging of our population, the demand for implant supported prosthetic therapy is also growing within this group. The age process of a person is not related to the calendared age but dependent on the individual biologic constitution. To figure out any compromised patient, the medical history and possible consumption of drugs must be evaluated before the surgical treatment. Minimal invasive procedures (i.e. short implants, 3d-supported implant insertion) seem to be a proper strategy to minimize the risk of the surgical stage. It should be considered that the implant supported reconstruction later on is easy to be cleaned also for those who become handicapped when getting older. Removable, telescopic retained dentures meet this requirement rather than fixed ones.

In terms of success, the dates of implant survival within our own collective show the same outcome for the group of over seventeenth compared to the younger ones. It can be concluded that implant therapy is safe and very helpful for elderly patients to ensure chewing ability and to improve quality of life.